Jackson County and the local Port Authority have signed a lease option agreement for Mississippi Gasification.

The agreement allows the company, a wholly owned subsidiary of New York-based Leucadia National Corp., to apply for $800 million in loans from the U.S. Department of Energy.

Officials say the project has already secured $300 million in Gulf Opportunity Zone financing.

The Moss Point facility would produce about 123 million cubic feet daily of substitute natural gas, which would be distributed along major natural gas pipelines. Substitute natural gas is made mostly of methane and is chemically similar to natural gas.

The Mississippi Gasification project must gain DOE approval and undergo permitting processes.